Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-06-01
HOW PROTRCTION WORKS.
How the TaEiff Robs The AMERICAN Farm.

4 Il
about the "orgsniZsd army of protection"
and the "mOb of consumers" He says:
In my last two letters on the subject OF
how farmers ere taxed have somehow
anticipated the regular order OF
my design; have known our
dear good natured American
"Hodges" how they are oppressed by
the sugar duty and swindled on the salt
tax. These two articles are, of course,
used in the house. l ought to have begun
the expose Of the CREST tariff robbery on
the materials the farmhouse, barns and
stables are built of. l viii make good
this omission to-day. OF course we all
know that timber and lumber is the ma
terial from which farm habltations, barns
and stables are built. Well, then, the
tax on every 1000 feet OF lumber not
planed or finished is So. OF this class
of lumber we imported in 1886
So, 243,736 worth, and the Treasury
received 1857, S4S duty on it. That this
lumber is enhanced per 1000 feet to the
consumer, whether imported or produced
In Maine or Michigan, is as clear as the
sun at MONDAY. Now, our friend Hodge,
in Kansas or Iowa or Nebraska, having
lived in a shanty for seven years, raising
wheat or corn, and receiving for his pro-
duct Gas l have clearly proven over and
over AGAIN. the price prevailing in Lon
don or Paris, and who, therefore, is not
heholden in any way or manner to
an enhancement of prices by the
mock duty tina. tariff trickster5
have put on foreign wheat and corn, has
saved enough money, laid by duIing, say
seven years, stinting himself in ell sorts
of manner, to build what he considers a
nice house for Mrs. Hodge and the
children. OF course in doing so the chief
material used is lumber, but in steps the
tariff and says pay toll CT 50 Or every
1000 feet OF lumber you use on the
premises. If Farmer Hodge were not
ho(dg(e), but reasonable, intelligent
American citizen, he would first
OF all know that he does pay
tax Of 81 on every 1000 feet OF
lumber, and 1 honestly believe there
are not 1O,per cent of the 10000, 900 Of
the Hodge family, comprising men,
women and children, VINO knew the fact
and understand it. Suppose now, the in
telligent Hodge VINO does understand this
fact were to ask the following question:
Why should l pay 81 per 1000 feet on
lumber when the Treasury is overlooking
with sn annual surplus Of 100000 900?
The answer he would get would be as
follows: You see, friend Hodge, there is
the state of Maine and the state OF Michi-
gan, where we grow our own native arstO-
cratic timber; and that our timber is
aristCcrstiC is perfectly demonstrated by
its dimunitive and puny size and calibre,
just the same as the true aristCcratic de-
scendants of long line OF bIue-blooGed
ancestors of France or Spain are known
by their puDy and diminutive stGtures
Well, then, we must first of ell protect
cur aristocratic timber and lumber, be-
cause it cannot compete with the pauper
lumber of Canada, which mas not drop
Of aristocratic blue blood in il.
Then, again, friend Hodge, if you don't
pay 50 tsx on each 1000 feet of lumber,
Maine, Michigan and other timoer-
producing states will be deprived of at
least $25, 900, 900, or perhaps $50, 200, 600,
OF bonus annually. And lastly, brother
Hodges of Kansas and Nebraska, If you
don't pay tax on timber we in Michigan
and Maine will not eat any of YOUR wheat,
and then you VII be 3 pauper farmer.
Poor Hodge may scratch his head trying
to find something in it to answer these
forcible arguments. But as he is not
him out.
OF course the aristocratiC home timber
dodge against the pauper labor timber of
Canada is a pleasantly not worth no.
ticing. The plea for not being deprived
Of S25, coo, 900 bonus is intelligent On
account of seIf-interesC inherent in man |
kind. But the plea that the farmers |
wheat is benefited by the consumers of |
the timber regions is simply big lie.
And here I'll prove it. The great bulk of |
the lumber produced in the United |
States was as follows, according 10 the !
census of 1880:
Michigan. $50, 449,925 SlS s64 40
- 45T,359 Maine ........ 1888 sos |
Wisconsin II 952 347 Iowa ......... d, Isj,6.S
Indiana 80. H2GO,s30 Missouri. 5,265,6l7 |
New York. l4,3j6,9l0 Illinois $500. 5,O63U37 |
These are the states chiefly Interested
Now, there are only three states in the
above list that 90 not export bOtA wheat
and corn, and they are Msine, New York
and Pennsylvania. In 1880 the state of
wheat, and needed about 1900 900
bushels in addition from ell the other
states. Besides this New York produces
over SI4,UOO,OOO of lumber annually.
Pennsylvania raised I9,462,4Q5 bush
I'D VI UACG-sJ GuO ulu uOb IGtU |
my wheat raised outside her own state.
The state of Maine consumes about
), 100000 bushels of wheat and raised
i65, ia bushels. That is, this state buys
bout 100000 bushels of wheat outside
Ter state. Altogether, say, New York
nd Maine need 100000 bushels of
wheat over and above what is raised in
hese states. Yet it is inpudentIy and
asserted that these
100000 bushels OF wheat consumption /
will affect the total wheat production
f the country, when we raise about $780,
200 bushels and export more than
00,000,000 bushels of wheat, including
Wheat -four. And, let it be fully under
TODD, this argument of consumption of I
ereals is made by the organized army of 1
rejection in everything that the farmer c
SEES, from wood screws to horseshoe
ais. But let US come back to MIR. l
lodges house. Having paid tax of 81 7
er 1000 feet on lumber, he pays a tax of I
per cent on the screws he uses, 40 per I
ent. on the nails, and, of course, he
avs tax on the iron hinges and door L
,cks. 6
Now, we certainly must put couple of L
oats of paint on friend Hodges house.
he tax or duty on white lead is cents a
Ound. Although, am bound to the
ate, at the present moment there is a
ice little cut-throat cOmnetItion uOinp D